|
|
People suffering from Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) develop
progressively increasing finger stiffness in the morning, their
grip weakens, and they experience crippling pain in their hands
and wrists.
CTS is usually thought
to result from long-term repetitive motions of the hands and
wrists. A few years back it was most often seen in factory
workers, secretaries, and supermarket cashiers whose jobs
required them to repeat the same hand and wrist motion hundreds
of times each day. However with the widespread use of personal
computers, the incidence of carpal tunnel has spread across all
professions.
|
|
| Splinting, rest,
anti-inflammatory drugs and frequently surgery are the
treatments most often recommended by conventional physicians.
However although these treatments relieve the pressure and may
eliminate the symptoms, they do not treat the cause of CTS. |
|
| Repetitive motion is
not the only culprit when it comes to CTS. Women who are either
pregnant or taking oral contraceptives, and also diabetics all
have a higher than average incidence of CTS. All three groups
also have an increased requirement for vitamin
B6. |
|
| It was this
connection, made more than 20 years ago, that led John Ellis,
M.D., of Mount Pleasant, Texas, to conduct several well
controlled studies to show that severe B-6 deficiency causes
CTS. Repetitive movement, however, may aggravate the condition. |
|
| Vitamin B6 is now the
most frequently used and well-known nutritional treatment for
CTS. However, vitamin B-6 is not an overnight cure. Studies show
that CTS will improve after taking 100mg of B6 twice each day
for two to three months. |
|
| As people are rarely
deficient in only one nutrient, a combination of B-2 and B-6 has
been found to be the most effective. Taking 50 mg of B-2 each
day has been found to be an effective dose. |
|
|
